Aishwarya Balsekar: From the Valldaura Campus to Earth Architecture in India

Aishwarya’s first lesson was collaboration. “Much of our study plan in India is very individualistic. At IAAC it is about teamwork,” she said. “At the end of the day you don’t work individually.” At IAAC she could experiment with materials and lines of research she would not have explored otherwise, worked as a class assistant, and joined a broad and welcoming international network.

She chose the second year to develop a research methodology: how to frame a question and solve it in her own way. During the master she focused on timber construction, while her independent thesis explored earth and architecture. In that second year she shared a thesis process with two classmates: one worked on a data tool for earth and natural materials, one on a modular timber system and one on bioplastics and algae. “We were making prototypes for each other,” she remembered. “You end up with a lot of knowledge just through collaboration and debate.”

Back in India, Aishwarya founded Architecture Anahata, an academic and professional studio that organises workshops with Indian universities, and also works on interiors and furniture. In the workshops, students explore earth and timber with their hands: combining traditional earth techniques with woven cane, testing cross-laminated timber with scale models and full-size panels, and studying bamboo and timber joinery for dynamic facades. One week-long design and build workshop produced a modular timber structure that can be assembled and taken apart, with glue-laminated beams and timber panels tested against steel and concrete sections of the same size.

Aishwarya is part of Double Twist Architects, a practice founded in Barcelona that has expanded to India, where she is one of the design leads. In Barcelona the practice is building a solid and laminated timber research centre for life sciences in a former market building. Another project tests precast concrete elements built off site for a very restricted urban plot.

Her favourite project is a residential expansion for a craft university in Kutch, India, which supports local artisans in building their own businesses. The buildings are designed in rammed earth, connected by a raised walkway that celebrates Indian ceramics. With her research background, Aishwarya is testing rammed earth mixes that include by-products from sugar cane, linking the material to the identity of the client, in a seismic and desert region. The design adds thick walls for thermal comfort, solar panels and rainwater collection.

Aishwarya recommends learning Rhino and Grasshopper for a few months before starting, even if everything is taught during the programme. She also suggests practising how to read research papers quickly and extract what is relevant. “If you’re happy doing what you do, IAAC is there to support you and help you get it,” she said.